Patients to add to own health records

Doctors may know best but patients could soon be adding to their own health records.

Health Ministry technology manager Alan Hesketh says electronic health records will allow people to add health information, but this will need to be protected from abuse.

The ministry is looking at the role of electronic health records - which would hold a complete summary of a patient's health information and could be accessed by patients themselves - as part of a review of its health information strategy.

Mr Hesketh says people could use the records to update address and appointment information but could also add "personal notes on a person's or family member's health situation".

This facility could be abused by those seeking priority or special treatment, he says.

"Any information provided by a person will clearly need to be verified by the appropriately skilled health practitioner before making treatment available. I would not expect decisions on priority to be made solely on what a person had entered."

The source of information in a person's health record will need to be clearly identified and trust in the records will be vital to their success, he says.

"That's something that has prevented progress - how can we safely share information? It's about knowing who is looking at the information and who put the information into a record and whether you can trust it."

Phil Brimacombe, chief information officer at Counties Manukau and Waitemata district health boards, says electronic records will be vital in dealing with the fallout of an ageing population and a shrinking health workforce.

People will need to take charge of their own information.

"Not all the people who have traditionally done it in the past for us are going to be there."

DHBs had made limited progress in establishing systems to exchange information.

"We haven't exchanged a lot between each other and with primary care organisations. We need to do something radically different."

The two DHBs have teamed up with Auckland DHB to buy an electronic referrals system that would allow the DHBs to exchange referrals with GPs and among themselves.

Mr Brimacombe says it is unrealistic to expect all health providers would access the same record, but records could be introduced for patients, their GPs and DHBs - where most interaction occurs.

Regional collaboration will have to take precedence over local interests to achieve health connectivity, he says.

Mr Hesketh and Mr Brimacombe were speaking at a health connectivity roundtable hosted by Fairfax publication CIO and sponsored by health IT firm Simpl.

Seven district health boards are jointly seeking information from vendors of electronic health records.

- © Fairfax NZ News